Back To The Castle
by howdareyoustealthatcar
Summary: Rose Weasley is starting at Hogwarts. She makes interesting friends and some enemies... Rose/Scorpius. Constructive criticism is encouraged.
1. Chapter 1

Quick Note: I wrote this story... 3 years ago? I'm not sure when. I was looking through my documents when I found it and decided to post it. Anyways I'm still looking for helpful criticism because I might want to keep continuing with this story. If you have any ideas, interesting plots, etc. feel free to include them because it's been a while and I don't really remember what I had planned...

Running through the brick wall barrier to Platform 9 ¾ is thrilling. It was all thrilling really. Getting to finally go to Hogwarts, the place James Potter, my cousin, has been bragging about for ages. Mum just got me a cat yesterday along with all my books and parchment. I've framed my letter and I've been practicing spells left and right.

"Rose dear, hurry up!" My mother, Hermione Weasley shouted. I was in awe of all the wizards and witches bustling around me. My father, Ronald Weasley was dragging me by the hand to meet up with James, Lily and Albus. This is Albus' first year at Hogwarts as well, so I unloaded all my anxieties on him.

"Albus!" He smiled and waved at me. Albus was an adorable, short little boy with dark black hair and a contagious smile. "Are you ready? Do you have all your books and supplies? What house do you think we'll be in? I hope I'm in Gryffindor!" I talked about a mile a minute and Albus just stared at me.

"Rose, don't get me all nervous! Mum just had a row with me because I was so nervous!" His mum, Ginny Potter, married to the famous Harry Potter. I wasn't sure what for though. Whenever I asked him he said he'd tell me another day. I guess he doesn't like reliving his glory days.

Suddenly, the happy chatter stopped and all the adults were staring far down the Platform. I looked over and saw what they were staring at. A father, mother and child all with very blonde hair and pale faces who were staring back at us. The father nodded at Harry and he nodded back.

"Who's that?" I asked my dad.

"The Malfoy's." He scowled, showing his obvious hatred.

"Be nice!" Mum smacked dad. "We're supposed to be at peace!"

"Whatever." He muttered, and then kneeled down to me. "Be sure to beat that boy at every test Rose."

"Ron!"

"Just some playful competition." He replied. The train was staring up and my heart lurched in panic. It was time! We all quickly loaded our trunks onto the train and peeked our heads out the windows to wave goodbye. I could see my dad's arm around my mum's shoulders as she waved back to us.

"Remember to do well in your studies!" She said.

"And cause a little trouble!" Dad said, followed with another hit from mom.

Then the train began to move and soon they were completely out of sight. James, Albus and I walked around the train looking for a good compartment. Within seconds James found some of his friends and completely ditched us.

"Oh look its Victoire!" Albus said. I glanced over at her laughing in a compartment with none other than Teddy Lupin. We were about to join them when they started snogging. Albus' mouth dropped open. "We have to tell mum and dad!"

"I don't think they would appreciate that. Come on, let's go." I said, wandering along the corridors with Albus. We finally gave up looking for an empty one and settled on one with only three people in it.

"Do you mind if we sit here?" Albus asked.

"Of course not." Said a dreamy voice. She had very blonde hair and big, wide eyes. She was reading a Quibbler, whatever that was. "I'm Ella Huffman. Who are you?"

"I'm Rose Weasley and that's Albus Potter."

"Oh!" She exclaimed. "I know you! My mother used to be friends with your parents. Her name was Luna Lovegood."

I still had no clue who she was, probably crazy. I looked over at Albus and his eyes lit up.

"My dad's mentioned her! It's great to meet you." We looked at the other two in the compartment, one we didn't recognize but the other…

"You're that Malfoy boy!" I almost yelled.

"I would prefer being called Scorpious." He said coolly. Albus sniggered at his name.

"I don't think we're supposed to talk to you…" I started to wish we hadn't picked this compartment. Dad made it clear that he really hated the Malfoy's.

"Why not Weasley? Scared?" He sneered. I was starting to hate him almost as much as dad did.

"No. It's just that I was brought up not to hang out with scum like you." I may be coming off snobbish but he just made me so… angry! All he could do was scowl and turn his head towards the window.

Sitting beside me, the boy was looking very uncomfortable.

"Who're you?" I asked.

"I'm Tom McLaggen." He said. The room was very awkward. I sat across from Albus and he looked as unsure as I did.

"So." Albus said, trying to start some conversation. "What year are you guys in?" He asked. "Rose and I are in our first year."

"First year." Tom replied.

"Second year." Said Ella.

We all looked at Scorpious and he said with a roll of his eyes, "First year."

"What house do you think you'll be in?" Ella asked.

"I'm hoping for Gryffindor." I said brightly. "Both my parents were and I think it's the best house personally."

"Me too!" Albus added.

"My mother was in Slytherin and my dad was in Gryffindor. I don't really know which house I want though." Tom said.

"What?" Scorpious scoffed. "A Slytherin married a Gryffindor? Your mum must've had low standards."

"Shut up Malfoy." I sneered at him. "I suppose you'll want to be in the evil house then?"

"We're not evil, we're cunning and swift. It's the only house worth being in."

"So you don't care about bravery, intelligence or loyalty then?" I spat back.

"You said yourself that you preferred Gryffindor the best. So you don't care about being cunning, intelligence or loyalty either!" We were having quite a row now, but I couldn't stop. Something in me needed to beat him and be better than him.

"I said it's the best in my opinion. I still think the other houses are fine, except for Slytherin." I gave him my best sneer.

"You're just jealous that Slytherin can beat Gryffindor in everything."

"Do you really want to bet on that Malfoy?" He hesitated for a moment.

"Yes. How about we see which team wins in the first match against Slytherin and Gryffindor. And if Slytherin wins, you have to do my potions homework for two months and you have to do it well."

"Fine. But if Gryffindor wins, you have to say out loud that Gryffindor is better than Slytherin and do my potions homework for one month."

"We have a deal then. And if you don't mind, I'm going to go change into my robes."

Scorpious walked out of the compartment and Albus, Ella and Tom were all staring at me.

"First day here and you already have an enemy?" Albus said.

"I didn't mean for it, it just kind of happened." I said. I really meant it too. I didn't want anyone here to hate me, but I guess it was too late to change that.

The train stopped in a matter of minutes and we all had to rush to get our robes on and get outside.

The castle was beautiful. Enchanting. Mesmerizing. Albus and I stopped in awe as we got out at a place called Hogsmead. There was a huge, magnificent lake in front of the castle that we had to cross in boats. I hopped on one with Albus and Tom as we made our way to Hogwarts.

My heart was beating a mile a minute, preparing for the sorting. I would probably get in Gryffindor, but you can't help but be nervous about this sort of thing. My house is going to define my time at Hogwarts and which friends I make! Plus, I'd love to win the house cup, so I don't really want to be sorted into Hufflepuff. The Ravenclaws seem sort of stuck up. They are extremely smart, which my dad says I've inherited from my mum, but she was in Gryffindor as well! As for Slytherin, I would despise being put in there with that Malfoy bloke.

Albus hear me muttering my insanities under my breath.

"What are you saying?" He asked.

"I'm just really nervous about the sorting." She said.

"Well, I don't know about you, but my dad said he'd be proud no matter which house I was in."

"Even Slytherin?" I asked.

"Especially."

"Wow. My dad would murder me if I was in Slytherin. Literally." My face was twisted in worry, and I knew Albus could tell.

"Rose. Don't make this about pleasing your dad. If he wanted you to be in Slytherin, would that be the house you wanted as well?"

"I guess not…"

"Then don't worry about it. Even if you don't get Gryffindor, I'm sure you'll be fine."

I tried to breathe as evenly as I could, but even that task seemed impossible.

We got out of the boats and I made sure to stay close to Albus. We were lead up to the castle by a strict looking woman in emerald green robes.

"That must be Professor McGonagall. Mum told me that she used to be the head of Gryffindor. Now she's the headmaster." Albus whispered to me.

The inside of the castle was intimidating. It looked ancient and prestigious and… I had read about those! Mum bought me, Hogwarts: A History, last year when I was complaining about not being able to go to Hogwarts yet. She said it'd helped her out a lot. Anyways, I read that the staircases moved. It was really a sight. Rows and rows of stairs shifting whenever they pleased.

We finally got to the Great Hall and Professor McGonagall asked us to wait outside. We were all huddled in a big group. I could see Scorpious a few feet ahead of me and I scowled under my breath. I barley knew him and I hated him! We chatted a bit with other people and I met Henry Steels, Kathleen Clearwater, Melissa Dumphin and William Terrey. Sooner than I would've liked, we were called in to be sorted.

"Adler, George."

I watched anxiously to see what would happen. The old, musty hat was placed on top of his head. It muttered a bit, so no one could hear and it soon called out,

"Slytherin!"

The Slytherin table cheered as George sat down with them. The sorting went quite quickly. So far Kathleen had been placed in Hufflepuff, Melissa was in Gryffindor, Ella was in Ravenclaw and there had been more people that I couldn't remember.

"Malfoy, Scorpious."

He strutted up to the seat and the hat was placed on his head. He was sitting there, more anxious than I'd ever seen him, sitting silently until the hat made his decision. It took a fair bit of time for the hat to decide. Then,

"Ravenclaw!"

I almost gasped. That git got into Ravenclaw! I thought they were supposed to be smart? Next was Tom, who got put into Ravenclaw as well. That surprised me a bit; he didn't come off as smart.

"Potter, Albus." I scanned the room and saw James give Albus a thumb up as he sat down. I could see Albus muttering something, though I wasn't sure what.

"Gryffindor!" The hat screamed. I smiled at the look of joy on Albus' face as he sat down next to James. Then Henry went up and he got put into Gryffindor.

"Weasley, Rose." My hands were shaking as I approached the stool. Everyone was watching. What if I got put into Slytherin? What if that's where I belong? So many things were running through my head that I got a jolt of surprise when the hat started talking to me.

"Hm… a brave soul I see…very courageous and there is lots of love in you." My heart rose. That sounded like Gryffindor! "But also very wise. You have a broader mind than I've seen in a while… oh and very witty I see. Which house…" I closed my eyes waiting for the impact of its words.

"Ravenclaw!"


	2. Chapter 2

"Ravenclaw!" It shouted and the Ravenclaws started cheering. Ravenclaw! I looked longingly at my cousins in Gryffindor and slowly sat down with the Ravenclaws. How could this happen! That hat even said I was brave. Well I guess I'm smarter than I am courageous. What would dad say? Oh he's going to be so angry with me. I sighed and looked at who was around me. I saw Ella a little further down and waved at her. I looked across from me and there was none other than Scorpious Malfoy.

"I guess we're both a little disappointed today." He said to me bitterly.

"And I guess our bet is off."

"Oh yeah." He hardly even seemed to care, he was so upset.

"So did your dad expect you to be in Slytherin then?" He nodded. "I know how it feels. Every single person in my family has been in Gryffindor. My mum, dad, grandma, grandpa, aunt Ginny, uncle Harry, uncle George and his wife, uncle Bill, uncle Charlie, uncle Percy and his wife, James and now Albus. They're going to be so mad." I looked down at my shoes.

"Hey Rose!" Tom butted in. I glanced up and saw his beaming face. At least _someone_ was happy to be here.

"Hey Tom." I said dully.

"This is great! Ravenclaw! We're going to do brilliant on our owls and everything. I was kind of nervous about that, but I guess that hat sees more potential in me than I do!" I could tell he was ecstatic to be thought of as wise, so I tried to smile along with him but he saw right through it. "You're not happy?" He said it like it was the most unconceivable thing on the planet.

"Well it's just… I…" I didn't know how to explain it to him.

"Everyone expected you to be in Gryffindor?" He asked. I just nodded and glanced over at Albus, laughing, having the time of his life and making new friends. Why couldn't that be me?

I noticed William Terry (he says to just call him Will) sit down next to me with a huge smile plastered on his face.

"Oh hey Rose, isn't it great we got in the same house?" He said ecstatically. "Oh Tom you're here too!" Things couldn't get more wonderful for Will. I looked over at Tom and he was signaling for Will to drop the whole Ravenclaw thing.

"Tom, Will, don't let me ruin your fun. You can freak out as much as you please." I said. They both shrugged and Tom moved beside Will so they could talk about how pleased their parents would be.

Before I could blink, the day was over. We had our feast (the only good part of the day so far, since I was allowed to sit with Albus and James for a while) and then got sent back to our common rooms. An older student named Jason Philly led us there and explained how the entrance worked. You had to answer a question to be able to get inside.

"What if we can't figure it out?" I said panicked.

"Then you have to wait for someone who can. That way you learn." He said. I rolled my eyes. All the Gryffindors had to do was remember a stupid password. We got assigned rooms. I was with 4 other girls: Rena Temalrk, Hannah Josephs, Georgia Landon and Karris McLaggen.

"So you're Tom's sister." I said, hoping to become friends with her as well as her brother.

"Yes." She said snobbishly.

"I've talked to him a little bit. He seems nice."

"And?" She spat at me. She had dark blonde hair like her brother, but hers was long and straight. Her eyebrows were perfectly plucked and her face was perfectly manicured, quite unlike me.

"I w – I was just making conversation." I stuttered and kept to re-packing my things.

"Don't mind her." Georgia, whose bed was next to mine whispered, "I hung around her last summer while our parents were friends. She has quite a temper, but she can be okay when she feels like it."

"When will that be?" I asked.

"Close to never." We laughed together.

"Why is her brother so different from her?" I asked.

"Oh I suppose they both take after one of their parents. It's quite an odd situation actually. Their mother Jenna McLaggen was in Slytherin, but she's probably the most cheerful and friendly lady you could ever find. I don't know what she did to make it in Slytherin… but anyways Tom is so much like her. And their father Cormac McLaggen is… brutish. Really. Not to mention, rude, arrogant and a whole load of other things. Well Karris is exactly like him. And both their parents were brilliant in school, so I guess that's how they ended up in Ravenclaw."

"That is weird. I thought Slytherins were supposed to be mean and Gryffindors nice." I said.

"Yes I know. Oh there is one more thing…" She started, but didn't get to finish due to the huge bang outside of their room. We all went running and saw none other than Scorpious Malfoy on the floor, laying next to a broken lamp, looking like he had been hit by a Petrificus Totalus hex. Tom was standing above him with his wand out. He looked around nervously at everyone watching.

"Tom!" Karris shouted. "What did you do? You'll get yourself expelled! There's no need to brag about how good your hexes are!"

"No." Tom said in a hushed voice, trying to not start a commotion. "He provoked me… I was just so mad…" I knew how he felt.

"Don't worry Tom, just undo it and nobody can blame you for being provoked by a Malfoy."

"But I don't know how! I only read up on how to do it." He said nervously.

"I'll do it." I quickly undid the spell and Scorpious got up looking ticked.

"How dare you hex me McLaggen!" He shouted at Tom.

"Back off Malfoy. Don't make me do it again." Tom said threateningly.

"Guys just stop!" I screamed in frustration. "What is this even about?"

"Nothing." Scorpious and Tom said together quickly. I eyed them suspiciously, but neither of them would meet my eyes. I shrugged and walked back to my room mates.

"That was exciting." I said.

"More like annoying." Karris said rolling her eyes and walking back to our room. Rena walked back up with her but Hannah, Georgia and I stayed in the common room talking. We sat in three big dark blue comfy chairs with bronze tassels.

"Tell me about your family." I said to Hannah and Georgia.

"Well I'm a half-blood. My parents were both wizards and witches, but my dad's a mudblood. My mom's name is Serena Josephs and she works in the Auror's Department in the Ministry of Magic." Hannah said.

"My dad works there!" I exclaimed.

"What's his name?" She asked.

"Ronald Weasley. Ask your mum to see if she knows him." Hannah nodded and continued. Her dad ran a book shop in Diagon Alley.

"You may've seen him there when you got your books." She said. "He has really dark brown hair with some grey in it." Georgia went next.

"I'm a muggle-born, so my background's not that interesting." She said.

"Nonsense! My grandparents are muggles." Georgia smiled at me.

"Well they run an auto shop together." She said. Hannah and I both looked confused, so she elaborated. "They fix cars."

"Oh my granddad would love that!" I said.

"The muggle?" She asked.

"Oh no, my wizard granddad. He loves muggle things."

We talked into the night and headed up to bed yawning. Things were already looking up.


	3. Chapter 3

Christmas came so fast, and without warning. Ravenclaw has been… good, to say the least. But I still dread having to go home and tell my parents. They've been sending me a few letters and none of them even asked which house I was in! I guess they just assumed it was Gryffindor. Sometimes I still catch myself glance over at their table and wonder what my life would've been like if I was over there.

Although I did get some great friends. Hannah, Georgia and I have been almost inseparable and we're all good friends with Tom and Will as well. Even Scorpious and I haven't had a row with each other in a while. I talk to Ella quite a bit too, but she has her own group of friends in second year. Oh and guess what! James has a girlfriend. Her name is Elizabeth Greyer who's also in Gryffindor. I always tease them about it whenever they're together, but they do look quite cute. Albus has his own group of friends which is great, but I never see him much anymore. But I am doing brilliantly in all of my classes and I'm sure my dad will be pleased that I'm beating Scorpious at everything…

We're leaving tonight on the train to go home for Christmas. How angry will dad be? I know mum won't care all too much… but it's a terrifying thought to tell dad.

Georgia, Tom and I packed and talked about what we hoped to get for Christmas and how excited we were to be seeing our parents. Hannah and Will both had to stay home for the holidays. Hannah's parents were traveling around Germany (by broomstick) and Will didn't tell us why he couldn't go home.

The day was over in a blink of an eye and I said goodbye to my friends and got in a compartment with James and Albus.

"So how're you and Lizze doing?" I asked James teasingly. His face flushed.

"Good." He said.

"Are you going to tell your mum and dad?" I asked.

"Of course not!" He said, his face getting even redder. "Do you know how embarrassing it would be to let them know I've got a girlfriend?"

"Well if you don't tell them I will." I taunted. His face was fuming and Albus was smiling and laughing beside me.

"So Rose, how's Ravenclaw?" Albus asked.

"Please don't bring that up!" I groaned. "I'm trying not to think about it."

"Deal with it Rose! That's the house you're meant to be in and I'm sure uncle Ron will understand."

"It's just not fair. How come you got sorted in Gryffindor and I didn't?" I said, not really expecting an answer.

"If you really want to know, I just asked the hat." Albus said. I stared at him in disbelief. "Dad said that he asked the hat to be in Gryffindor and that's where it put him."

"Albus!" I screamed, smacking his arm. "You told me to keep my mind blank, open and to not think anything. I could've been in Gryffindor." I crossed my arms and sat their grumpily.

"But I knew that's not what you needed. I could tell you only wanted Gryffindor because that's what your dad wanted for you. You belong in Ravenclaw. You're probably the smartest girl in our year and in Gryffindor you're ridiculed for that, instead of being praised like in Ravenclaw."

"My mum was the smartest girl in her year and in Gryffindor." I said.

"Rose!" James finally jumped into the conversation. "I can see what Albus is saying now. Stop trying to be like your parents. You're trying to live up to something your not. You are your nerdy, Ravenclaw self and you need to accept that. If you don't, your parents won't either."

I just sat their silently, trying to soak in what they were saying. Maybe they were right.

We all got off the train and the second I got onto the platform I could see my mum and dad standing there and smiling at me. No matter how nervous I was, I was still excited to see them.

"Mum! Dad!" I yelled and ran over to them and gave them a big hug.

"How've you been liking Hogwarts?" My mum asked me.

"It's brilliant! I've made some great friends too. I'll tell you all about them back at home."

"Have you beaten that Malfoy boy at everything? Are you going to win the house cup for Gryffindor?" My dad asked with a smile.

"Ron…" My mum warned.

"I'm just joking around." He said. But I could tell he wasn't joking.

We took some floo powder home. Our house was huge, magnificent and bright. It was quite close to the Potters house. We all walked into the foyer and dad took my trunk and other things upstairs.

"I know you're in Ravenclaw." My mum said quietly, so dad couldn't quite hear. I gasped.

"What!"

"I'm so proud of you Rose." She kneeled down to me and pulled me into a hug. I was taken by surprise, but it was the best thing anyone's ever said to me.

"Rose!" Hugo came running down the hall and gave me a hug as well.

"What's all this then?" Dad said as he was coming down the stairs and he saw everyone hugging me. Mum and I just smiled at each other.

We all went into the kitchen and Hugo started bombarding me with questions.

"What's it like? What spells have you learned? Do you like your schedule? Is your room nice? Are the people nice?" He said at a mile a minute.

"Slow down Hugo." Dad said. "One question at a time. So how's Gryffindor Rosie?"

Why did that have to be his first question? My palms were getting sweaty. I looked at my mom and she gave me a reassuring nod.

"Dad… I have to tell you something." I said. He stood there quietly. "I'm not in Gryffindor." I said too quietly to be heard.

"What was that? I can't hear you." He said leaning closer to me.

"I – I'm not in Gryffindor." My voice cracked at the end and I stared at my shoes. I couldn't even look at his face.

"You're what?" He said. I could tell he wanted to shout. "Hermione, I know I didn't hear Rosie right. What did she say?" My eyes were glued to my feet. I wanted to run but my legs refused to budge.

"She's in Ravenclaw" Mum said clearly, "And I'm extremely proud of her."

I wasn't looking at them but I could hear mum nudge dad and he choked out something.

"Oh, of course. Yes. Great house." Rubbish, all of it. I knew he was disappointed.

We discussed more about my time at Hogwarts and all of that. I told them about my friends, I told them that I was smarter than Scorpious and I even told them about James' girlfriend.


	4. Chapter 4

I could tell dad was fake smiling through the entire thing. He hated me.

After a busy day we all went to bed. Mum came up to my room just before my lights turned off.

"Hey Rosie, did you have a good day?" She asked me, sitting on the edge of my bed. My room was a teal blue colour with a grey flowery bedspread and posters of the Chudley Cannons all around my walls.

"Yeah it was okay, but I think dad hates me." I said.

"He doesn't hate you he's just… surprised. Trust me, he never meant to put so much pressure on you but he can just be so thick sometimes." She smiled at me. "Don't worry about it another second. Before you know it he'll be cheering on the Ravenclaw quidditch team with you."

"Mum, you must know that our team is always awful." I said only half jokingly.

"Well then he'll be cheering you along with your OWLs." She smiled and got up and turned the lights off to let me sleep.

Three years have past and I've got to say that dad's warmed up to Ravenclaw. He still makes the occasional mistake or falters when he's buying me house posters for my room, but I know his heart's in the right place. I'm top in my class for almost every subject, (Except for potions, which Scorpious has managed to beat me at) and mum said she couldn't be prouder. Karris and Rena have made them selves known as the 'prettiest' (they're like scary looking dolls if you ask me) and most snobbish girls in our year. Georgia, Hanna, Tom, Will and I are all best friends and Will and Hannah started dating this year! Will said he's fancied her for years and it's all quite adorable actually. Scorpious and I… things are a bit complicated. We compete in just about everything, and I win in just about everything but there are those moments when it almost seems as if we're friends. It even looks like Scorpious wants to be friends! It's absurd, we used to be sworn enemies, but somewhere in the middle of our third year we grew fond of each other. I'm not saying I fancy him or anything, although plenty of girls think he's quite handsome, but we've both come to enjoy our little back and forth.

Anyways, it's the start of the term feast in my fourth year and the headmaster, Professor McGonagall began to make a speech about how wicked this year would be and the friends we would make and blah, blah, blah.

"This year will be even greater than most because we have a few guests joining us. You may have noticed a lack in our sixth year students and that is because they have decided to participate in our exchange program where they will be spending their full year at Grenadon, a wizarding school in Germany. Therefore, some sixth years from Grenadon will be joining us as well!" McGonagall said as a group of kids immerged into the great hall. There were about 6 boys and 6 girls all wearing black formal pants and a deep blue overcoat. They all had a roughish look to them and some of the boys were very handsome as well.

"I'd love to show some of those boys around the castle." Georgia said to me and we both started giggling.

"I trust that everyone will be very courteous and help some of our guests who may have trouble speaking English." Fendragon said.

"Georgia, I think we should volunteer to help don't you?" We giggled some more and Tom looked over and rolled his eyes.

"Come on Tom; tell me you don't fancy any of those girls over there." I said.

He glanced over at them, sitting down at the Hufflepuff table. "They alright. I prefer English girls though."

"But they're so foreign and… rugged." Hannah joined in and giggled.

"You don't think I'm rugged then?" Will laughed and put his arm around Hannah.

"No." She said, "You're just cute and fit." She kissed him on the cheek and Will's face flushed red.

I glanced down the table and saw Scorpious sitting alone. Has he not made any good friends yet? I felt extremely bad, sitting here laughing while he was all alone, so I moved down to sit across from him.

"Hello." I said. He jumped a bit; he mustn't have noticed me coming over.

"What're you doing here?" He said a bit harshly.

"Whoa, keep your shirt on, I was just being friendly." I said jokingly. He glared at me suspiciously.

"But we aren't friends."

"Look, it's a new year and I've gotten a bit fond of our banter over the past while. I'm tried of pretending I think you're scum so… friends?" I held out my hand.

He hesitated for a moment before shaking my hand. "Friends." He said.

We ate the feast together, enjoying the others company. He was very nice when he wasn't trying to one up me on everything, I really don't know why dad hates the Malfoys so much. I don't think I've even seen a more well mannered and sweet boy. I like this a lot better than being enemies, that's for sure.

When everyone was walking back to their common rooms, Albus came up to me.

"I saw you sitting with that Malfoy boy." He said like I had done something horrid.

"And your point is?" I said.

"He's no good! Don't you ever wonder why your dad hates him so much? Scorpious' father was a death eater!" He said in a loud whisper.

"How do you know that?"

"I hear things! I even heard that he helped murder the old headmaster while he was still at school!" Albus persisted, "Scorpious is probably just like him, conspiring to be one of the death eaters that never got caught."

"Albus, really, that story's all rubbish. The ministry caught every last death eater. I think we would know that especially considering our dads are aurors."

"Think about it Rose, there are obviously still dark wizards left and chances are that some of them followed Voldemort!" I was getting frustrated.

"We're getting off topic. Scorpious is a nice person and he is not evil!"

I stormed off to the Ravenclaw common room.

"There is a headmaster who is rarely spoken of, now deceased. His picture is not in the headmaster's office, although he was a great man. Who was he?" The portrait asked. A headmaster that doesn't have a picture? How strange.

"I don't know!" I yelled. The portrait stayed unmoving. I sighed and sat down, waiting for the next person to come along. Five minutes later, I saw Tom coming around the corner.

"Tom! I'm locked out, I can't get the question." I pleaded. He smirked and listened to the riddle.

"Oh, my dad told me about this one I think. Although he never said anything about him being a great man, more like a prick if you ask him." He said. "Severus Snape." The door swung open and a huge smile spread across his face. "After you, malady."

We walked in the portrait and saw just a few people in the common room.

"So." Tom said. "I saw you sitting with Malfoy." He raised his eyebrows.

I groaned and flopped down on a couch and Tom followed. "Honestly, what's wrong with you people? It's not like we're getting engaged! I was just trying to be nice." I said, exasperated.

"I wasn't accusing you, I was just wondering why. Everyone thought you hated each other."

"You can only hate a person so long." I said simply.

"Ok, I was just making sure you didn't fancy him or anything." He grinned.

"No, of course not." I said. "You really can't do anything in this castle without people commenting can you?"

We talked for a while and then he started to ask me something.

"Rose, I've wanted to ask you this for a while," He started.

"Rose, Rose! Come quick!" Georgia burst in the common room shouting. "Those boys from Germany are in the halls **lost**! Isn't that fantastic? I even overheard them saying that they really just wanted someone to show them around and have a cup of tea with!" We both squealed.

"Well let's get going then!" I said happily. We ran to the door and before I left I said to Tom, "We can talk later okay?" He gave a half-smile in response and Georgia and I leaped into the halls and ran around for a couple of minutes until we found them, still hopelessly lost.

"Do you need any help?" Georgia asked them, batting her eyelashes.

"Ve vould love someone to show us around de castle. Ve've been having a horrible time trying to find everything." A tall dark haired boy at the front of the pack said.

"Well we're your girls then!" I said with a huge smile. "I'm Rose and that's Georgia."

"Hello." Another one said in a thick German accent. "I'm Lukas, he's Flynn," Lukas said, pointing to the one who spoke first, "and that's Gerard." He pointed to the last boy.

"Cute names." Georgia smiled. "Well let's start the tour in the Great Hall. Shall we?"

We showed them practically the whole school, minus the common rooms. Thank goodness it was a Friday and we didn't have to be in our rooms until midnight. They were all swell people, very polite, friendly and straightforward. Why don't they make them like this in Britain? I noticed that Georgia was getting quite close to Lukas and he was really warming up to her as well! I can't decide which one I like more, Flynn or Gerard. They're both very fit, but Gerard is manlier and Flynn is more innocent and young-looking. Well, we'll just see how the night goes! We finished most of the tour (if we went through all of Hogwarts we'd be here for days!) and sat outside by the lake, enjoying the evening. For the first time all night, I had alone time with Georgia because all the boys were fooling around with the water.

"Having fun?" She asked.

"Yes. And it looks like you're having some fun as well." I gestured to Lukas. A goofy grin spread across her face.

"He is SO sweet and funny and cute and I really think he likes me!" She squealed. "Are you going for Flynn or Gerard? I couldn't really tell."

"I don't know… we'll see. But what are you doing over here talking to me when your man is right there?" She smiled and got up to talk to Lukas.

"Guys I'm just going to go to the loo really quick, I'll meet up with you guys just inside." I said to them and they continued talking.

I went to the washroom as fast as I could and quickly freshened up. As I went back outside I could hear them talking around the corner. I almost walked right up to them until I heard the harsh tone of their voices.

"Vhat are ve going to do? Georgia and Lukas have gone and I really don't vant to spend time alone with dat girl." Gerard said.

"I don't know. Should ve fake sick?" Flynn said.

"I von't have to fake, being around her is nauseating!" Every time they laughed it was like a knife stabbing me in the heart. Was I really that awful to be with? Tears were welling up in my eyes so I sprinted in the other direction.

I came out into the courtyard, which was extremely empty due to the late hour. I sat down on one of the benches to let my tears fall. How could I be so naïve?

I heard someone come into the courtyard. My head shot up, what if it was one of them? My eyes fell on Scorpious, looking at me with a puzzlingly.

"Oh good, it's just you." I croaked.

"What's the matter?" He asked sweetly sitting down next to me. I told him the entire story, leaving out no details.

"I just feel so thick for thinking they could actually like me. Of course they don't want to hang out with a nerd like me; I'm in Ravenclaw for crying out loud!" But if that was the reason then, "But then why do they like Georgia! It must be me. I'm horrible to be around or something." While I told my story, he just sat there, taking it in.

"Rose." He chuckled lightly. "Those boys are idiots! You shouldn't be listening to them. Everyone thinks that because they're from Germany, they know everything. But you know what I think? I think that they're just stuck up prudes who don't know anything about anything." I grinned at his words. "You know what else? You're amazing Rose. Don't let anyone tell you differently."

I could feel my ears turn red, but thankfully you couldn't see under my long hair. Suddenly, I popped back into reality and noticed how unusually close we were to each other. When did this happen? My palms went sweaty and I started freaking out. "I – I – We should go." I stammered. "It's late." I stood up abruptly.

"If you say so." All Scorpious did was smile.

That night, while lying in bed I couldn't help think about how very, very close we were and how very, very right it felt.


	5. Chapter 5

I woke up on a beautiful Saturday morning. Georgia was already awake and there was still a huge smile spread across her face. Even though I was still a little hurt from the night before, I couldn't help but be happy for her.

"So how was last night?" I smiled at her and raised my eyebrows. She looked at me and words started flowing out of her mouth. I knew she had been waiting to gush this out to someone.

Georgia and Lukas had walked around in the moonlight talking about their lives back at home and he had been very sweet, giving Georgia his jacket to sit on when they rested on the dewy grass. She said he was the perfect gentlemen, listening to everything she said and being so kind about everything. They stayed out past curfew and at around 1 am they snuck up to the Ravenclaw tower and he gave her a kiss goodnight.

"How was it?" I asked in anticipation. By this time we were both perched on my bed, eating the chocolates that mom had sent me and Georgia was hugging her pillow.

"Fantastic. It felt like I was Cinderella!" She exclaimed. Although I had no clue who or what Cinderella was, by her expression I could tell it was a good experience. "It was so forbidden too. At any moment, a professor could've seen us! But that made it so much better."

Through all of her excitement, I couldn't help but let my mind wander around the topic of romance…and it wasn't about those German boys.

"So how was your night?" She asked.

"It was… alright. I don't think those boys liked me very much." My heart lowered, thinking about their harsh words.

"Then that is their loss! I'm sure if they had known you a little longer they would've seen how fantastic you are. I know some people already think that…"

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing." She said quickly. "I'm going down to breakfast. Are you coming?"

"In a bit." I said. Georgia hopped down the stairs, obviously still floating from last night.

I had never really noticed how pretty Georgia was. She had glossy brown hair, sparking blue eyes and a face that made you want to get to know her. I walked over to the mirror. My red hair was frizzy and my freckles were placed haphazardly all over my face. I had boring light brown eyes and a face that just wouldn't cooperate. I sighed, slipped some clothes on and went downstairs to join everyone for breakfast.

"Rose!" Tom called my name. We had finished breakfast and I was walking back to the common room with Georgia and Hannah.

"I'll meet up with you guys later" I said, and hung back to talk to Tom. "What's up?" I asked him. He seemed very fidgety at the moment.

"Um, I don't know. What's up with you?" He said all very quickly.

"Me? Didn't you want to tell me something?"

"Oh… you remembered. Well I don't know if it's such a good idea anymore…"

"You can't just say that! Now that I know there's a secret I have to know!"

"I can't…" He started to walk away but I grabbed his hand and pulled him back.

"Tell me." I commanded.

He sighed, but before he could begin to talk, guess who we bumped into?

"Hello Rose" Scorpious walked out of the great hall and right up to us. "McLaggen." He looked at Tom. "I hate to interrupt your chat, but Professor McGonagall wants to see you, Rose, in her office."

"Me?" I was frightened. What did the headmaster want with me?

"Yes. You better get going." He said, looking very serious.

"I don't even know where here office is!"

"I'll show you." Scorpious offered. "Come on."

"Our talk isn't over Tom. I'll talk to you after!" I said to him as I walked away with Scorpious. Tom was not looking all too happy.

As soon as we were out of range from everyone else, Scorpious slowed down.

"Relax Weasley. The headmaster isn't looking for you." I stopped in my tracks.

"Then why…"

"Trust me; you do not want to hear what little Tommy boy has to say to you. I did you a favor." He gave me a sly smile, looking rather pleased with himself.

"You…" I was starting to see more of the Malfoy family that my father hated. "You can't just do that! I want to hear what he has to say. That is not up for you to decide. Just because I start being nice to you, doesn't mean you own me."

"It's not that big of a deal. I was just trying to…" He looked scared all of a sudden. So unsure.

"I don't care." I said harshly. "Now, I'm going to talk to Tom to listen to what he has to say and you can't stop me."

"Rose," He grabbed my wrist gently, but I just tugged away and stormed off.

"Tom, I've been looking everywhere for you." I had finally found him sitting out in the courtyard reading his Charms textbook.

"Oh. What did Fendragon have to say?" He asked, shoving his book back into his bag.

"Nothing. Malfoy made the whole thing up." I scowled, still angry with him. "He just didn't want me to know your secret. It's ridiculous really. He's being such a prick, telling me what to do! He just makes me so angry and I…"

"I like you." Tom blurted out, cutting off my rant about Scorpious.

"What?" I said softly. I had heard him correctly, I'm sure of it. I just didn't believe it.

"I. Like. You." He said slower, with a definite nervous shake in his voice. "I mean I have since first year, I think. I didn't really admit it to myself until last year." He paused, waiting for me to say something. I couldn't. I guess there was a part of me that knew he liked me. The only problem was I didn't feel the same way.

"Tom…" I started.

"It's okay." He said with a defeated tone in his voice. He knew. "I just wanted you to know, that's all. I didn't want to leave Hogwarts and keep thinking, 'What if?' It's fine. I'm fine. I'll go now." He started to leave.

"Wait." I ran after him, I couldn't leave things like this. "You're my best friend. I don't want that to change. Please don't hate me."

"Rose, I could never hate you." He smiled at me and walked away.


End file.
